As always, Livy’s plans did not turn out as she’d hoped. Although she’d planned to be back in Manhattan the night of her father’s funeral or, at the very least, early morning after, she’d ended up staying another full day in Washington. Although she’d helped her mother contact the many life insurance companies so that she could lay claim to Damon’s money only because it meant her mother most likely wouldn’t bother Livy for the next few…years.

Her mother often forgot how annoying she found Livy until she had to spend some “quality” time with her only child. Then all those memories came flooding back and Livy didn’t have to worry about seeing her mother—or putting up with her—for ages.

And despite Livy’s suggestions that she leave, Toni insisted on staying. Which, in the end, was good. Because the woman knew how to get people through an airport as quickly as possible.

“Sit here,” Toni said, pushing Livy down by her shoulders so that she sat on the one piece of luggage she’d brought with her. “I’ll get a taxi and we’ll be out of here.”

Toni went off and Livy rested her elbow on her knee, her chin on her fist, and gazed off across the busy streets surrounding JFK Airport. As she waited, obscenely long legs and massive bodies began to march by her.

She didn’t move or anything, but she did notice the squealing girls and the crowd of people following the full-human males walking by. It was around that time she heard a low male voice bark, “I am not a football player. Now get out of my face.”

For the first time in days, Livy smiled. She couldn’t help it. What exactly did the man expect? He was seven feet and two inches tall. Nearly four hundred pounds. And even with that handsome face, wickedly sharp cheekbones, and dark brown and gold hair that hung in ragged layers almost to his shoulders—he was terrifying looking. Of course people thought he was on a national sports team. Their other option was murdering serial killer from a “Friday the 13th” movie.

Livy waited until Vic was a few steps from her before asking, “Hey, mister. Can I have your autograph?”

Snarling, Vic replied, “I am not a—Livy?” Vic stopped right in front of her, gazed at her. “What are you doing?”

“Selling my ass on the streets for a few bucks.”

“Times that tough?”

Thankfully, Vic had learned how to deal with what very few called Livy’s sense of “humor” not long after they’d met. Which was good because Livy really didn’t know how to not ask people strange, disorienting questions. As an artist, she found their confusion fascinating.

“Tough enough,” she replied. “Hi, Shen.”

“Hey, Livy. Like your hair.”

Livy smirked at Shen’s running joke. As a honey badger, she had black hair with the white streak off to the side while Shen, as a giant panda, had white hair with big swipes of black through it. He was also munching on that damn bamboo crap. With his fangs, he was clearly a predator. But for whatever reason, although they had the digestive system of carnivores, giant pandas ate bamboo. The problem was that pandas needed a lot of bamboo in order to survive. A lot. So every time Livy saw the man…he was eating.

Still, it was fun to watch him hang around poor Vic Barinov. The hybrid didn’t know what to do with the sweet, but sometimes chatty, six-foot panda who was nearly as wide as he was tall. Something else Livy and Shen had in common. Massive shoulders on relatively smaller human bodies than most shifters were used to. Oh. And they were both Asian. Well, as Jake liked to say, “Livy is half Asian, half Polish and allllll honey badger!”

Livy, however, had much less in common with Vic, but they’d worked together once when helping Toni rescue her baby brother from Delilah’s cult.

“Before we go any further,” Vic said to Livy, “my house?”

“What about it?”

Vic raised an eyebrow.

Livy rolled her eyes. “I haven’t been back since the last time you threw me out.”

“I didn’t throw you out. I asked you nicely to leave so I could call the contractor to fix all the holes you’d put into it.”

“I had to get inside, didn’t I?”

“But you have your own place.”

“I ran out of honey.”

“So you came all the way out to Westchester for honey?”

“You have really good honey.”

Vic blew out a breath. “Just tell me if I’ll be facing holes when I get home.”

Livy smirked. “When you have rum-infused honey in your cabinets—you’re asking for it.”

That made Vic smile, something he didn’t do very often. Then again…neither did she.

Using his bamboo stalk to point at them, Shen admitted, “I don’t get the thing you two have for honey.”

They stared at him while he chomped on his bamboo until Vic turned back to Livy and asked, “You need a ride home?”

“Toni went to get a cab. She should be back soon.” She studied Vic a moment. She hadn’t seen him in months; his work took him out of the country very often. “What are you doing back in the States? Or are below-freezing East Coast temperatures where you come to get a break from those balmy Russian winters?”

“I have information on our old friend.”

“That Whitlan guy? Are they still looking for him?”

Vic nodded. “Yeah.”

“You’d think they’d have gotten him by now. How hard is it to find someone in this day and age?”

“The man knows how to disappear.”

Livy shrugged, not really caring. Honey badgers didn’t concern themselves with the problems of other shifters. They saw themselves as honey badgers not as part of a bigger shifter universe. A good thing since most of the other breeds didn’t really like them and some didn’t even know honey badgers existed.

“What about you?” Vic asked. “What are you doing here?”

“Just coming in from Washington.”

“Visiting family?”

“Dead family.” Livy chuckled at her own joke, but when Vic and Shen just stared at her, she said, “Sorry. Bad joke. I was at a funeral.”

Vic frowned, which made him look even more terrifying, but Livy knew that was just his face. His handsome but terrifying face. God, those cheekbones are amazing.

“I’m sorry, Livy. Who died?”

“My father.”

Both men blinked and she realized she’d surprised them.

“Livy…” Vic looked at Shen, back at her. “My God, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay.”

“It is?”

Livy shrugged. “We weren’t close.”

“Still. It’s your father.”

“I threw a baseball bat at him once,” she admitted to the two men. “Clocked him right in the head. He was out for, like, a good thirty minutes.”

Shen blew out a breath. “Oh. Okay.”

But Vic refused to be put off. “He’s still your father. I know this must be hard for you.”

“Not as hard as when he woke up and came after me with that baseball bat. Didn’t catch me, though. I’m superfast when running…away.”

Vic stared at her a moment before finally stating, “I want to awkwardly hug you.”

Livy looked up at him. “Awkwardly?”

“Neither of us is very good with affection so I pretty much assume that any physical encounters between us will be awkward.”

That made Livy laugh and without thinking about it too much, she stood up and wrapped her arms around Vic’s waist, giving him a hug she hadn’t given her mother when she’d left for the airport.

Vic hugged her back and, if Livy wasn’t mistaken, kissed the top of her head.

“If you need anything,” Vic said, “you just let me know.”

“Thanks, Vic.”

Livy pulled away from Vic. Not because she was tired of that hug—it was surprisingly nice—but because she sensed someone grabbing the rolling case she’d brought with her for the trip.

Using her foot, Livy rammed the case down, spun around, and nearly had her hands around the man’s throat when Toni came running up, screaming, “He’s the cabbie! He’s the cabbie!”

Livy immediately pulled her hand back. “Oh. Sorry.”

“He’s just helping with the luggage,” Toni explained. She patted Livy’s leg, trying to get her to remove her foot from the bag. When Livy didn’t move fast enough, the patting became a hard slap.

Livy moved her foot and the driver quickly took her bag and headed to the waiting cab.

Toni glared at her, which just made Livy chuckle. Then Toni smiled up at Vic. “Hello, Victor.”

“Hi, Toni. How are you?”

“Fine.” Toni patted Vic’s arm, waved at Shen, since she didn’t know him well at all, and headed to the cab.

“I gotta go.” Livy smiled at Vic. “Maybe I’ll see you around.”

“You still working at the Sports Center?” he asked.

Livy sighed. “Of course. Where else would I be? In Paris? Milan? Perhaps in the middle of some great war? Why would I be there when I can take pictures of giant guys who balance on thin skates and charge around an ice rink, chasing after a little black puck? Because that’s fascinating.”

“So work’s going well?” Vic asked with a straight face.

Livy smirked. The bastard. “See ya.”

Livy got into the taxi beside Toni and closed the door.

“Huh,” Toni said.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“Explain to me at what point in our friendship I ever expressed having any tolerance of girls who play that particular game?”

“Fine,” Toni said. “I just noticed that Vic watched you until you got into the cab.”

“So?”

“His friend was busy staring at the football cheerleaders or dancers or whatever they are who’d just passed by. But Vic watched you.”

“And? Your point?”

Toni shrugged and looked out the window. “Just sayin’.”

“Again,” Livy felt the need to make clear, “little tolerance for those kinds of girls.”

*****

“I feel bad,” Vic told Shen as they headed toward the car he kept in long-term parking at the airport for when he came into town.

“About what?”

“Livy. I had no idea her dad passed away.”

“Doesn’t seem like they were close.”

“So? He’s still her father.”

“Not everyone is as close to their family as you are.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means you and me are close to our families. My father dies? I’m sitting alone in my house for a few weeks, sobbing and eating bamboo stalks in his honor. But not everybody deals with death the way I do.”

“Still…I feel like I should do something.”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know. I was hoping you had some ideas.”

“You know what helps me have great ideas?”

Vic sighed. “A free dinner?”

“At a steak house that’s not afraid to include raw bamboo on the menu.”

“You want me to pay for us to go to the Van Holtz Steak House?” A shifter-run establishment that catered to all species and breeds and was the only restaurant Vic could think of that offered raw bamboo as a side dish.

Shen raised and lowered his hands in the air before digging another short bamboo stalk out of the pack he kept in his denim jacket pocket. “You want ideas, don’t you? My ideas ain’t free.”

The ninth book in the Pride series was announced this week (such a beautiful cover!)

I wonder if I should pre-order for March 2014 already 🙂

Here is the blurb:

Livy Kowalski has no time for idiots. When you shapeshift into a honey badger, getting through life’s irritants is a finely honed skill. Until she gets stuck housing her nutso cousin and dealing with her dad’s untimely and unexplained demise.

That’s where Vic Barinov comes in—or his house does. Vic can’t step outside without coming back to find Livy devouring his honey stash and getting the TV remote sticky. It gets his animal instincts all riled up. But he’ll have to woo her at high speed: all hell is breaking loose, and Livy is leading the charge.

My favorite thing about Demanding Ransom is the romance. Well, let’s be honest here, my favorite thing about any book is the romance. I just love being a reader and getting the chance to fall in love every time I pick up a new book.

As a photographer, I get that same butterfly feeling in my stomach when I look at an image of a couple in love. There is just something about it that sets my heart racing. It’s the very same sensation I get when I read about a near kiss, an affectionate embrace, or even a hand innocently brushing another’s. I get all goosebumpy and giddy just at the thought!

When a book can put the emotion of an image into words, it’s the perfect fit. After my photoshoot with my models for Demanding Ransom, I knew I wanted to see one of the shots I captured on the cover eventually. Though I absolutely love everything about the original Demanding Ransom cover (it is all kinds of epic!), there was just something about the intimacy in these new images that I felt reflected the storyline so well. I started working up a cover revamp, not with the intention of actually having a new addition cover. But as I got going and starting playing around in Photoshop with textures, tones, and fonts, it took on a life all its own. I’m so pleased with the end result and I hope you are too! The anticipation, the longing…it’s a thread that weaves its way through the entire plot and now the cover is a perfect representation of that.

I hope you all love it just as much as I do!

*I love this cover – beautiful, Megan!*

Sometimes life takes things away from you. In nineteen-year-old Maggie Carson’s case, it’s taken more than its fair share.

Determined to move forward, Maggie embarks on her first year of college, hoping to finally put her past behind her, exactly where it belongs.

But that’s hard to do when the present is just as difficult. And even harder when someone like Ran, the gorgeous paramedic that keeps crossing Maggie’s path, challenges her to face things head on, rather than bury them like she always does.

Ran hasn’t had a perfect life either. But there’s something different about him, and something different about the way he makes Maggie feel. Maybe meeting Ran is life’s little gift for Maggie—a sort of consolation prize for enduring everything she’s had to go through.

But things don’t come easy for Maggie. Why should love be the exception? And just when everything starts to settle, it’s all turned on its head once again.

If there is one thing Ran has taught Maggie, it’s that you can’t sit on the sidelines of your own existence. When life takes something that’s yours, you have every right to demand it back.

Only for Maggie, that is easier said than done.

Note: Demanding Ransom is a New Adult Romance with non-explicit sexual content.

Megan Squires lives with her husband and two children just outside of Sacramento, California. A graduate from the University of California, Davis, Megan is now a full-time mother, wife, and dreamer – though her characters don’t often give her much opportunity to sleep.

Blurb: “Every kid has problems. Every kid has even more problems when they move to a new home. But when a kid with problems moves to a new home that has a Demon living inside it—look out!

Etta’s world is about to spin out of control when she encounters her new roommate—and Rahovart, that ancient trickster, is in for a few surprises too. So don’t mind all the crashing and rumbling; that’s just the normal noise Angels and Demons make when they’re fighting an epic war in the attic.

One thing’s for sure: Etta and Rahovart will have to go through Hell to Heaven and back again before that old Victorian home in Quantico Town finally quiets down… ”

Excerpt – The Demon Side:

Etta plopped back onto her bed and stared at the ceiling for a few moments. I wished I could hear her thoughts. Her father had just admitted to being a murderer for all practical purposes, though that was not how I viewed him. I truly believed John only tried to save the village, but his fervor and some help from a desperate Alastor, turned what should have been a heroic act into a bloodbath. Many men have unknowingly fallen from grace in the name of the greater good. Now, hopefully Etta would see that her father was just the victim of blurred lines between good and evil.

“What are you thinking?” I asked as I lay down next to her on the bed.

“Can a person still go to Heaven even if they’ve killed someone?”

“Well, I’m not in the business of getting people to Heaven, Etta. That’s the last place I want them to go,” I reluctantly replied.

“Even if it were me?” Etta stared hard at me with watery eyes, looking right into my blackened soul. I never gave much thought to where her soul would go, except to stop her from mistakenly giving it to me.

“That is a choice for you to make. I can’t force you to choose a side. I can only put the temptations in front of you.”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

“What do you want me to say? I want to see you burn in the depths of Hell? You’ll never hear that from me. Only you and your actions can decide where you go when you leave this world.”

“I would go if it meant I could be with you, you know.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about.” As much as I would have loved for that to be the case, her comment angered me. I couldn’t imagine a person like her becoming something like me.

“I know that when you’re around I feel safe nothing could ever hurt me. I get butterflies in my stomach when you touch me. I know your soul, Ra. I don’t know how, but I know. I knew it the second I saw you. You weren’t meant for this existence. You fought for good once, and I’m certain you will again.” Etta was strong in words. She spoke with solid confidence. She described what I felt.

The Human Side (The Demon Side Series, #2)

Blurb: From above, Etta’s life seems to be calming down in the town of Quantico, Virginia, but with every passing moment away from his love, Rahovart finds the emptiness unbearable.

After redeeming himself once again as an Arch, Rahovart is still unable to let his past go. Needing to be near Etta, he strikes a deal with Father—except it turns into a mission with great consequences.

With Arch Angel Gabriel in tow, Rahovart sets out to prove himself worthy of Etta’s love, only to face discouragement from Etta’s father, John, and her new boyfriend, Tristan—on top of the threats made to Etta. Would he be able to protect her if she no longer remembered him or shared the love the once held so dearly?

One thing’s for sure: The past, with all of its secrets and lies will come back to haunt them all.

Excerpt – The Human Side:

“I have two solutions, but the choice of which to accept is up to you. There is plenty of time to think about these choices, but remember, whatever you choose, you will be bound to it.”

“What are the choices Father?”

“Your first choice is an exchange. Swear never to interfere with Etta’s life again, and all you have lost will be restored, including rank and principalities. If and when she returns to Heaven, her memories will be restored. Break the promise at any time for any reason, your soul shall be sent to Purgatory and Etta’s Guardians will be removed from her detail. As for the second choice, go to Earth in human form with no wings, no abilities. Show Etta the same cruelty and disdain as when the Demon Rahovart met her. Etta fell in love with a Demon once. It should be quite interesting to see if she can do it again. She must profess her love without coaxing or prompting. There can be no mention of our deal or what lies beyond the veil, including who you truly are, where you come from. Fail to abide by the rules or rekindle her affections, your days shall be spent on Earth with no recollection of life beyond the veil. But, succeed, and you can return home with the added benefit of continuing your relationship with her. Visit her anytime as long as it does not interfere with work.”

I listened intently as Father explained my options. Both carried heavy consequences if I failed to abide by their guidelines. He’d given me a life or death decision to make, but I didn’t need time to think. Without thought or question, I gave Father my answer.

About the Author: Heaven Liegh Eldeen started her writing career three years ago after being challenged by a relative. With her ‘Oh, Yes I can!’ attitude, determination and support from her family, she completed her first novel The Demon Side, which released in October 2011 and has been a finalist for Best Paranormal Romance in Romcom Inc.’s 2011 Reader Crown Awards as well as Oklahoma Romance Writers of America 2012 International Digital Awards. On November 28th, 2012 she celebrated the release of The Human Side; book two of The Demon Side series, which won Turning the Pages YA Paranormal Romance of the Year.

When she’s not kissing owies, climbing Mount Dishmore, or obsessing over her Facebook book page, you can find her at the computer revising or editing one of her five works in progress or Saturday evenings as a co-host to KMYC’s 1410AM The Dirt’s with Lori Schulz. Having lived in many states, she has now settled down in California with her husband, her son, and a beta fish named Barry and guinea pig Skunkers.

I was born in Africa… My father had come to Kenya in the British Army during the Mau Mau uprising and my mother had been born in Kenya and returned there after the war as a child welfare officer. Deciding there was no future in either Kenya or England, they emigrated to Australia when I was 10. A decision for which I will always thank them.

I joined the Australian Army Reserve when I was still at university because I was nursing a broken heart and wanted to do something that challenged me…and I got paid to do it. Little did I know it would be the start of a nearly 20 year part time career…or that I would meet my husband during officer training.

I have visited a refugee camp on the Thai Burma Border to teach a group of amazing young women at the Karen Young Women’s Leadership School about the United Nations conventions on the rights of women.

I am a lay preacher in the Anglican Church.

I am a needlework and quilting nut – a hobby that unfortunately clashes horribly with writing and is thwarted by having 2 needy cats who think that my lap is theirs of right when I come to sit down in the evening.

Oh…I am owned by 2 cats…the Kat brothers, Oliver and Toby.

I am a Capricorn with a deep distrust of water. I like to admire the sea from the safety of terra firma. I am terrified of yachts and scuba diving (although I will snorkel). I also hate heights.

I own very few “How to write” books…I don’t know whether this is hubris or fear. My two favourites are Donald Maas’ Writing the Breakout Novel and the Nowrimo bible “No Plot, No Problem” by Chris Baty.

When I was younger (and slimmer) I did a bit of amateur musical theatre, mostly Gilbert and Sullivan, which accounts for the hidden references to Ruddigore you will find in GATHER THE BONES if you look hard enough.

My favourite thing to do on holidays is go on ghost tours and yet I have only recently done the ghost tour that runs in my own home town.

So now you know all about me…Thanks for stopping by 

BLURB:

Can love endure across time?

When a seventeenth-century cavalier hurls himself over her garden wall, Doctor Jessica Shepherd is more angry than surprised. Although she ís no stranger to military re-enactors, there ís something different about Nathaniel Preston. If he ís to be believed, something…or someone…has sent him forward in time from the midst of a civil war to the quiet English countryside of the twentieth century.

With time working against them, Nathaniel has to convince Jessica why fate brought them together before he ís forced to return to his own era and certain death in battle.

Can the strength of love overcome all obstacles, even time itself?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Excerpt One:

“If you could lend me your horse, I would be grateful. It is a long ride home. You have my word that I will return it anon.”

“My horse? I don’t own a horse. Look, Nathaniel, you’ve lost a bit of blood, if you like I can give you a ride home.”

“But you said you had no horse?”

“In the car.” I could not help the exasperation that crept into my voice. His continuing delusion had really begun to concern me. “Nathaniel, look at me. What year do you think this is?”

“The year of our lord 1645.”

“1645?” I stared at him. “Nathaniel, it is 1995.”

He narrowed his eyes. “No, you jest.” He sank onto the kitchen chair, his eyes glassy.

“I do not jest. Now stay there. I’m going to ring my brother. Perhaps he can talk some sense into you.”

Keeping a wary eye on my visitor, I reached for the phone and carried it into the living room while I waited for Alan to pick up.

“Hey, Jess.” Alan greeted me cheerfully.

“Alan, are you busy?”

“I’m correcting papers, nothing I can’t put off. Is this important?”

“I have a man in my kitchen who thinks he is living in 1645,” I whispered.

“Sounds like a case for the psychs, not me.”

“Please come over, Alan. There is something about him…sorry I can’t explain–”

“Is he threatening you?” Alan’s tone was alarmed.

“No, not at all. He’s just a little…confused.”

AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Alison Stuart is an award winning Australian writer of historicals with heart. Whether duelling with dashing cavaliers or waywards ghosts, her books provide a reader with a meaty plot and characters who have to strive against adversity, always with the promise of happiness together. Alison is a lapsed lawyer who has worked in the military and fire service, which may explain a predisposition to soldier heroes. She lives with her own personal hero and two needy cats and likes nothing more than a stiff gin and tonic and a walk along the sea front of her home town. She loves to hear from her readers and can be found at her website, facebook, twitter and Goodreads.

With 100 recipes for teen and family favorites such as Pizza, Mac ‘n’ Cheese, Grilled Cheese, Sweet Potato Fries, Almond Streusel Coffee Cake, and more, Cooking for Your Gluten-Free Teen proves that teens and their families don’t have to sacrifice on foods, flavor, or convenience to eat gluten free.

Sarah Berghoff McClure practically grew up in the kitchens of Chicago’s historic Berghoff Restaurant, where wheat-filled German-American favorites such as schnitzels, spaetzles, strudels, and rye bread are staples. When Sarah was diagnosed with Celiac disease, she thought her days of eating her favorite pizzas, pastas, and pastries with her friends were over. Her mother, Carlyn Berghoff, chef/owner of the Berghoff Restaurant, stepped in, and together, she and Sarah began creating gluten-free versions of kid and teen-friendly foods that Sarah could enjoy.

Cooking for Your Gluten-Free Teen offers a unique perspective on living gluten-free from not only someone living with gluten-intolerance, but also from a parent who is also a chef, and a doctor, Susan Nelson, who specializes in treating teens and others with Celiac disease.

Living with wheat-intolerance in the family is hard. I am sure it is much easier than even a few years ago. These days you are able to order take-away wheat-free pizzas from your favourite pizza place . But it still sucks not being able to just eat what you like without worrying about the consequences. So when I saw this book on NetGalley, I could not push the “request” button quick enough.

The first part of the book deals with all the facts and figures – the things you want (and need) to know. It also personalise the condition in the “this-happened-to-me” pages. Unfortunately for me, I think the book is aimed at an American audience (?) as when it came to product suggestions, it was all brands not familiar to me.

The recipes are all familiar, easy meals – nothing new or special. But as it is written for the teenage sufferer, this all fits. I am sure than even the beginner teenage cook will be able to find an old favourite from these pages.

In the galley I received, I found only a few photos of the dishes but I am not sure if that is just because it is an ARC. Unfortunately this diminished my view of the book as I am a visual cook. I like to see what the final dishes will look like. The final copy might be brimming with beautiful photos.

All in all, I think it is perfect for the teenage market it is written for.